Beyond the Eternity

I stared down at Ryu Yeji's twisted body, crumpled like a discarded piece of fabric. Strangely, there was no blood, even though his head was completely gone.

How could someone contort themselves six times over like this, with such reckless disregard for their body?

The answer was simple.

This wasn't Ryu Yeji. This was an imposter. In fact, 'It' wasn't even human.

Shadow Demon Fang

✧ Artificial Familiar

Shadow Wolves. The same creatures of darkness that had blocked our path on the second floor of the mansion, before we reached the third.

They weren't nightmares who had taken the Path of Corruption (腐化之路) and become Terrors.

They weren't supposed to exist without some kind of intervention.

Entities created using Black Magic. They do not possess a physical body, nor do they have a soul.

Their only lifeline was a 'core,' much like the heart is to humans. If the core was destroyed, they would fade away like a wisp of dust.

Beyond that, they had no biological functions of a living organism. There was no need for them to eat, drink, sleep or even breathe.

They were simply hollow vessels carrying out the will of their creator.

However, they did possess some level of intelligence—whether naturally or installed by their creator, along with a personality. What they lacked was a Sense of Self (自我意识)

But that wasn't the most disturbing thing about them.

Being created from the Dark Element, they could freely merge with and manipulate darkness, shadows, at will. Additionally, due to their 'dark' properties, they had the ability to take the form of anything they came into contact with.

In other words, they were perfect Doppelgängers.

Imagine walking and talking with someone you thought was your friend, only to be betrayed and killed without knowing what hit you.

Yes, these bastards were a real pain in the ass.

But in the right hands, they could outshine even the most elite assassins. Of course, that requires enough mana to keep them around.

Even so, I couldn't help but feel frustrated.

Seriously, this sucks. I had a lot of questions for this guy, but that's not happening anytime soon.

Damn it. That idiot—why did he have to die so soon? Wasn't he supposed to be with Soo Jinyoung? Tch! Tch! If he was going to die, couldn't he have at least waited a bit longer?

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What are we supposed to do now if we run into more traps? The sacrificial goat is already gone!

The whole reason I had Ryu Yeji participate in the Sixth Fable was to use him as a sacrificial pawn. But that idiot went and died on his own! And this, despite being paired with the strongest member of the group!

How on earth did he let his guard down and end up kicking the bucket?!

Ugh, I can sense a throbbing headache coming on.

As I rubbed my temples, Moon Jiyeon stepped closer, her gaze fixed on the rapidly dissolving body of the Shadow Wolf. Her expression was a mix of amazement and disbelief at the phenomenon unfolding before her.

She asked a question. Her voice was calm, but trembled slightly. "W-What is that? And why does it look like Ryu Yeji-ssi?"

I shrugged, answering indifferently, "A Shadow Wolf. Same thing that blocked us on the second floor."

"Shadow Wolves? Are you saying those disgusting things can turn into people?"

"Yeah. Honestly, I've been wondering why they hadn't shown up until now. Maybe they're starting to change their approach. Despite how they look, they're really smart bastards, probably even smarter than Demon Goats (恶魔山羊)."

"T-That's insane! How can a monster be that intelligent?!"

Moon Jiyeon, usually composed and level-headed, was visibly shaken. The idea that these creatures could mimic human form struck a deep chord of fear in her.

If beings like these ever descended on Earth, it would be catastrophic. People wouldn't be able to tell friend from foe, and society would collapse under the weight of paranoia and distrust.

That's why strong investigative skills were crucial. But, of course, that was easier said than done.

Getting your hands on rare Skill Cards like Dragon Demon Eyes or Eyes of Justice was almost impossible under normal circumstances.

And even if you did get lucky, there was always the chance of pulling something entirely useless.

Anyone who's ever played a gacha game would understand. It's not the despair of pulling endlessly without a single 5-Star card—it's the bitter disappointment of finally landing a 5-Star card that turns out to be worse than a 3-Star card.

It was like pulling an Attribute Card such as Suicidal King that granted the power of resurrection, but the user had to kill himself to revive. Or worse, pulling the 'Oracle' Attribute card, which allows its user to see the future, but leaves them permanently blind as a side effect.

Hell, even my Black Box came with the massive 'Error' of suppressing my feelings and emotions.

Ah, silly me. I got carried away and started thinking about something else without realizing it.

"Wait," Moon Jiyeon's eyes slowly widened. "If this isn't Ryu Yeji, then where is the real Ryu Yeji-ssi?"

"Probably dead. It's rare for Shadow Wolves to leave their victims alive unless they're specifically ordered to. More importantly," I turned to Soo Jinyoung with a serious expression. "Soo Jinyoung-ssi, with all due respect, how did a Shadow Wolf manage to capture Ryu Yeji without you noticing?"

Soo Jinyoung frowned. "What are you trying to say? That I'm an impostor?"

"Please don't put words in my mouth. When did I ever say that. I'm simply asking how Ryu Yeji was captured when he was supposed to be with you. Did you two separate, even for just a moment?"

Her brow furrowed as she held her chin. "He was with me the whole time during the investigation... But wait... there was a moment when he was acting off. I think it was when we were searching the servants' room."

"It has to be that moment," I muttered.

I walked over to the spot where the Shadow Wolf had dissolved into nothingness (무) and bent down to pick something up from the ground.

A severed finger.

It was unmistakably his.

I walked toward Moon Jiyeon and tried to hand her the finger, but she shrieked and jumped back, her face paling in horror. "W-What is that?!"

"It must be Ryu Yeji's finger. Shadow Wolves can't take the form of something without consuming it first."

"B-But why are you giving it to me?"

"You're a practitioner of Divination. Perhaps you also have the Skill Card. You said it yourself, correct? As long as you have the necessary data, you would be able to find anything. I need you to track Ryu Yeji's location by using his finger. There's a high chance that he might already be dead, but I can't ignore the possibility of him still being alive."

"...."

Moon Jiyeon couldn't argue with my reasoning and remained silent.

Divination was simply the process of gaining knowledge about something using a medium. As a practitioner, she must have known that divination required an object, especially when the person being divined wasn't present.

She stayed quiet for a moment, her eyes locked on the finger in my hand. After a brief hesitation, she gulped and, with visible reluctance, reached out to take it.

Seeing this, Soo Jinyoung approached Moon Jiyeon and spoke up. "I'll recount the details of the incident before Ryu Yeji's disappearance. That should help with the divination, right?"

"Ah, yes. I'll appreciate it."

Soo Jinyoung then began to describe the events leading up to Ryu Yeji's capture and the appearance of the doppelganger. Moon Jiyeon listened intently, without missing any detail.

"First Floor," "Servant Rooms," "Unknown Door..."

Aimed with desired information, Moon Jiyeon took a deep breath. She seemed to have regained some composure and now focused intently on using Ryu Yeji's finger to track his whereabouts.

As a complete amateur, I had no idea if his finger would be enough. But if this finger couldn't serve as the medium, then what could?

[✧ Moon Jiyeon has activated Divination.]

Fu!

A sphere of light began to gather from the surrounding space, converging into her head. Her brown eyes dulled to a milky-white as she slipped into a half-Cogitation state.

Experiencing the phenomenon for the first time, I couldn't help but find Divination rather fascinating.

This phenomenon...

Song of Nightmares had described it as «Spirit Projection», the moment where the Spirit Body transforms into light and partially enters the Spiritual Plane. Once a connection has been established, the user could communicate with spiritual entities for assistance.

However, it was dangerous to completely abandon your physical body, as malicious spiritual entities could seize the opportunity to take control of it for themselves.

This was why a protective artifact was necessary for communicating with spirits. Upon closer inspection, I noticed a necklace with a golden gem nestled at its center resting around Moon Jiyeon's neck, its faint glow radiating an aura of subtle power.

Was that the artifact?

My attention shifted back to reality as Moon Jiyeon opened her mouth, her voice barely audible as she spoke:

"Ryu Yeji's location."

…

"Ryu Yeji's location."

…

"Ryu Yeji's location."

…

She repeated the same phrase seven times in a calm, mechanical voice. Her grip on the severed finger loosened, but the finger didn't fall to the ground.

Instead, it remained suspended mid-air, hovering before her like a sentinel awaiting its next command.

Moon Jiyeon paused for a moment, with an expression unreadable, before speaking once more:

"Ryu Yeji's location."

Her voice carried an ethereal quality, resonating with an almost otherworldly timbre, as though it could pierce through the boundaries of the unseen world.

In that instant, the suspended finger began to move forward, floating as if guided by an invisible force. Moon Jiyeon followed it without hesitation. Together, she exited the room in silence, along with the floating finger.

Soo Jinyoung and I exchanged quick glances before hurrying to follow her, leaving no room for hesitation.

Outside the room, Yoo Rin and Miyuki stood frozen, confused.

Yoo Rin finally spoke, "Ahjussi, what's going on? Why is Moon Jiyeon-nim walking like... like a zombie?"

"Just keep up. I'll explain as we go. You too, Miyuki."

"Yes, Ahjussi."

We proceeded, Moon Jiyeon leading the way, moving from one room to the next.

At some point, she stopped in front of a door, the finger having led her there. She didn't use the finger, but instead muttered something under her breath. The next moment, the severed finger erupted in flames, burning with an unnatural intensity.

The flames quickly consumed the finger, disintegrating it into ash before scattering it into the air. The ashes lingered for a moment before being sucked into the door, as if drawn by some unseen force.

Her eyes slowly returned to their natural brown color as soon as the finger was reduced to ashes.

Moon Jiyeon stood before the door, her gaze fixed on it. With a barely audible voice, she pointed at the door and said, "This is where it ends."